Country2000

Nowadays, country music often comes across as a collection of recycled songs about beer, nationalism, jeans, and occasionally a good pair of cowboy boots. That is understandable, since many of the songs played on radio stations focus on these topics. Still, country music was not always this patriotic and predictable, and the genre therefore still has the potential to return to its roots.
Country music is a unique American genre that grew out of folk and blues traditions, particularly the folk music brought to America by poor Scottish and Irish immigrants, and the blues sung by African Americans after the American Civil War. Both groups went through many hardships, and this was reflected in their music. The themes of folk and blues music often revolve around the singer continuing to live despite the harsh world around them. These were songs about discrimination, loss, poor working conditions, and the organized hardships these people had to endure. When country music emerged in the 1920s, these subjects became even more important. In fact, it was a genre that belonged to the working class of the American South.

When America transitioned in the 1970s and 1980s to what is considered the “fourth generation” of country music, two major movements emerged: pop country and outlaw country. In pop country, with well-known artists such as John Denver and Dolly Parton, the themes often revolved around love, heartbreak, and the homeland.

Outlaw country, on the other hand, had a distinctly rebellious attitude. Usually associated with Willie Nelson, it pushed back against the mainstream American culture of the time and used imagery from the Wild West to encourage listeners to break social norms. However, there was no trace of the patriotism that is now so characteristic of modern country music.

So when did that change? The short answer: September 11. It is important to understand that country music has always had a distinctly American sound. After the attacks of September 11, however, love for the United States moved to the forefront of the genre. Suddenly, a series of songs appeared condemning the attack, from Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American)” to Charlie Daniels’ “This Ain’t No Rag, It’s a Flag,” both vowing revenge for the attacks. These songs were only a small example of the wave of nationalism felt by the American public, but they brought country music back into the spotlight within a patriotic context. Soon, artists from rural areas discovered how profitable that patriotism could be.

Today, what some call “stadium” or “bro-country” is saturated with American pride, even when it sometimes seems unrelated to the rest of the song. It almost feels as though singers must reassure their listeners that they fully stand behind the flag. For instance, there is a notorious monologue about how Americans should support the military embedded in Zac Brown Band’s “Chicken Fried,” a song that, as the title suggests, is actually about fried chicken.

That said, even for those who would prefer their music without a touch of red, white, and blue, there is still hope within the country genre. Artists such as Orville Peck are expanding the audience of country music for the first time in years, particularly among marginalized groups such as the LGBTQ+ community. Folk music, which has always been the more progressive counterpart to the more conservative politics of post-9/11 country, is also striving to create safer spaces for disadvantaged Americans, with artists like Willi Carlisle writing songs about queer experiences (“Life on the Fence”) or about poverty in contemporary America (“Vanlife”). In short, although nationalism currently plays a dominant role in the perception of country music, that does not mean this excessive pride has to be permanent.